Dreamwork, need help

[Hærfest Leah]

I'm interested in dreaming about things like past lives, visiting someone in a dream, visiting another place in a dream and even meeting a specific deity. How would I go about working my way toward that?

Using a specific crystal or tarot or object relating to the purpose under my pillow?
Reciting a mantra or affirmation till I fall asleep?

I do ok remembering my dreams but I'd like them to be a bit stronger.

[Nova]

I think the following book is a good place to start. Understanding the fundamentals of sleep, dream language, subconscious, ego etc. will greatly improve your dreamwork. It will also tell you how to create a dialogue with the subconscious and dieties present within it. In this case the effort you put into it will be your return. Putting a crystal under your pillow will not have the rewards of regular study.

Inner Work: Using Dreams & Active Imagination for Personal Growth by Robert A. Johnson

I'm a fan of dreamwork and I respect that you want to experience your dreamstate more fully. I would like to say however, that although the dreamstate can be used for the things you describe - you do not have to be sleeping to meet your diety. Astral travel and past life regression can all be achieved through hypnosis and meditation. Maybe let your sleep be sacred. Your deep self communicates with you through dreams - shows you the images it believes you need to see. Is it really best to impose your conscious will on that dialogue? Wouldn't it be more interesting to know which dieties want to meet you? Just a thought.

[Hærfest Leah]

Thank you for replying Nova, You make very good points. I do work on this stuff when I get time awake but I've not had many results. I think I've done some of these things already in dreamstate so I wanted to explore it further. I'll check out this book tho, thanks.

[Tranquility]

Just as Nova said, Deity would probably be met easiest through meditation. Simply enter into a light trance and ask for a being to appear for you, or to give you a sign. Past life regression can also be done through meditation, but hypnosis and dreaming work as well. Good luck!

[Hærfest Leah]

Now isn't a light trance even deeper than just meditating because this is my next step. I need help on deepening my meditations towards a state of trance.

[Tabbykitty]

In my own experience so far, I noticed that past life references usually occur in dreams that are dreamt in the early morning period. Usually they are unusually vivid and I don't have a problem recalling the details.

How does one come by them? Well, usually they occur during a period where I am undergoing intense and active meditation to clear karmic patterns. This means not merely meditating to one's breath, but a focused attempt with clearly stated intent to clear a particular karma. Usually past life references to that karma will surface in dreamtime.

I think past life images pop up especially when we focus on trying to clear karmic patterns by intending to understand the lesson behind the pattern, and trying to get to the origin and source of the karma. I don't think of any specific historical period when I do that, I just focus on the pattern that I know I want to clear and focus on understanding the lesson behind it.

While doing this, sometimes... and only sometimes, I get past life references in dreams that help me to understand the lesson I am supposed to learn.

I hope that answers part of your question.